


A Knight in Shining Armor

by misura



Category: The Watchmaker of Filigree Street - Natasha Pulley
Genre: F/M, Undercover as a Couple
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-22
Updated: 2019-11-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:08:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21547345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misura/pseuds/misura
Summary: "So what are we doing here, anyway?" Matsumoto asked, looking around."I could tell you, but then you would only tell me it sounds boring."
Relationships: Grace Carrow/Akira Matsumoto
Comments: 3
Kudos: 14
Collections: Yuletide Madness 2019





	A Knight in Shining Armor

**Author's Note:**

  * For [partypaprika](https://archiveofourown.org/users/partypaprika/gifts).



Chivalry, Grace decided, might not be dead yet, but it most assuredly would be by the time she got through with it. By way of giving Matsumoto fair warning, she stepped on his foot.

She supposed it was to his credit that he got the hint.

"You looked like you were in trouble," he said, softly enough to be heard only by her.

"I wasn't," she whispered back, somewhat louder. "And even if I had been, what on Earth possessed you to step in and address me as your 'darling'?"

Matsumoto shrugged. He seemed to relax, as if to this question, at least, he felt he might provide a reasonable answer that would satisfy her. "I only saw your back. I didn't know if you were supposed to be a man or a woman. I thought it would be better to be safe than sorry."

Grace gritted her teeth. Matsumoto's hand was still on her arm, half-protective, half-possessive and entirely annoying. "I was pretending to be a man. And doing perfectly fine, thank you."

"You're welcome," Matsumoto said.

"You should probably move your hand. People might talk."

"Too late for that, I'm fairly sure." Matsumoto sounded rather cheerful for a man whose reputation was about to take a considerable blow, although Grace supposed most of his hangers-on wouldn't care. They might even take it for encouragement, for a genuine indication of Matsumoto's preferences.

Grace wondered why that thought bothered her as much as it did. Matsumoto could hardly be considered shy, after all. If anyone propositioned him, he needed but tell them their advances were unwelcome and that would be the end of it.

"So what are we doing here, anyway?" Matsumoto asked, looking around.

"I could tell you, but then you would only tell me it sounds boring."

Matsumoto sighed. "I tried to do a good deed, you know. This feels like excessive punishment for that."

"The world's an unfair place," Grace said without much sympathy.

"Ah well. If my father receives word I've been dallying with pretty young English gentlemen, he might suddenly decide that my marrying an English gentlewoman will not be so very bad and disadvantageous to the family after all. He's quite keen on grandchildren, you see."

Grace wondered if there was anything in the world capable of making an actual impact on Matsumoto's good mood. She liked him well enough most of the time; he was a likeable enough person, but on moments such as these, she wished she knew he could be hurt, or saddened, or at least made to feel a little less cheerful about everything.

"I'm not going to marry you," she said.

Matsumoto chuckled. "Why are you so sure it's you I'm talking about?"

Grace decided she didn't care to examine her reasons. She knew, it was as simple as that. She supposed that wasn't very scientific-minded of her, but then, even in science, one was permitted to take certain things on faith, without performing a relevant experiment to prove them first. Otherwise, no one would ever discover or invent anything new, on account of all scientists spending their entire lives repeating the experiments of their predecessors. "Are you saying it's not?"

"I'm saying it's interesting you jumped to that conclusion," Matsumoto said.

Grace tried to find pleasure in the fact that he was clearly on the defense, except that she had nothing to gain by continuing her offense. "If you say so."

"Do you want me to leave?" Matsumoto's tone was serious, sincere. He still hadn't moved his hand.

Grace swallowed. She hadn't been in any danger. Matsumoto hadn't rescued her in any meaningful way. She had been and still was perfectly safe in her disguise as a young man. She didn't need anyone else's help, least of all Matsumoto's.

And yet.

"No," she said, surprised by how clear her voice was, how certain.

"All right," Matsumoto said, stepping a bit closer. "In that case, can I ask you to give me a chance to not be bored by what we're doing here? It feels like the least you could do."

"Fine," Grace said, half of her already regretting her decision. The other half of her didn't, as much, so she supposed that at least there was that.


End file.
